


Disabled Reaction : Shadow in the Ice

by Akheloispione



Category: Guild Wars 2 (Video Game)
Genre: Beware of spoilers, IBS, Spoilers on "Shadow in the Ice", spoilers !
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-10
Updated: 2020-02-10
Packaged: 2021-02-28 00:55:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,051
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22655104
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Akheloispione/pseuds/Akheloispione
Summary: One charr. One dragon. One champion. The dynamics of this story may not end well.Set of one-shots. Each chapter is a different story.
Kudos: 4





	Disabled Reaction : Shadow in the Ice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For a legend, it's normal to face Jormag, the main enemy of the Norns.  
> However the enemy may be Fire, but Ice burns just as much.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I needed to write down my reaction, to externalize or I was never going to get over it.  
>   
> ⚠ (last) WARNING : Spoilers ⚠  
> * Season 5 "The Icebrood Saga" - Episode 2 (Shadow in the Ice)  
> 

>   
>  Chapter 1 : Raven's skin & Wolf's fur ([fr] La peau du Corbeau & la fourrure du Loup)  
> 

  
The three lost spirits appeared and helped Braham weaken Drakkar. Ira had a strange feeling in the pit of her stomach. One less burden like a feather falling delicately. The same feeling of lightness she had had when she learned that Braham had cracked the Fang.  
When the Wolf had appeared talking about a Norn of prophecies, Ira was afraid of having to carry a new title, a new mission, a new load. And despite her well-designed muscles and imposing stature as a warrior, her shoulders couldn't bear any more responsibility. She had so much to do : she couldn’t add to the list. But that faint sense of relief was already gone.  
She wondered if Braham would face her again, if he would shout at her again when he became a legend, with the strength and notoriety to challenge Ira's position.  
After all, the Raven had guided Braham, not Ira. Not the child blessed by the farsighted and cunning spirit of Nature. After all, the spirits bowed to the son of Eir, despite all the exploits of the Shaman Venra's daughter.

*

She had made so many offerings to the Spirits of Nature, so many sacrifices. She had given so much. She had given everything. Her heart, her soul, her life.

She still had to deal with an elder dragon and she had just dealt with her two charr friends, Rytlock and Crecia. A touch of guilt was born in her heart when she hit her lover and especially when she discovered that she enjoyed hitting and beating Crecia.  
She often wondered if Rytlock would choose Crecia or Ryland over her. If he would choose his family over her wings. If he would choose the past over the future.

It was eating away at her... that fear. Fear that they'd take everything away from her when she'd already given everything to this world. And Jormag was taking advantage of it.  
  
Turn back...  
  
  


*

Yeah, she didn't want to be alone. Sometimes she even wanted to abandon them on the battlefield so she wouldn't be the one to be abandoned.

She had done everything she could to protect the Spirits of the Wild, but now they were turning their backs on her. As if she was no longer with them, no longer a norn. And somehow she wasn't. She had died for this world and absorbed the energy of a human god.  
But she had become this half-mortal to protect this world. So why did this world blame her for no longer being a norn. Everything she did, she did for Nature.  
  
_You can't trust them._  
  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
Braham turned to his friend, looking worriedly at the two charr. She pointed at them vaguely, asking him if all was well before his irises moved apart in horror. A kind of krait in a stormy mist came out of the lifeless body of Drakkar.  
The ambassador of Jormag stood before them. And only the legend and the commander were left to fight him. A shiver ran down Ira's spine.  
  
During the fight, Jormag's voice had become silent to Ira. Jormag tried to confuse Braham by making him understand that the Spirits hadn’t really granted him their powers, leaving him alone with himself, as a simple norn.  
In the silence of her head, Ira was filled with doubts. The vicious words were not addressed to her, but implicitly they pressed on the sensitive points, the faults of her heart.  
  
Finally, Ira found himself alone in the battle, cursing everyone. In the meantime, she thought she saw a request from the tribune, but she didn't want to hear it.  
Her blows were extremely violent, her anger overflowing. She struck again and again, leaping and knocking. Suddenly, reality caught up with her when she collapsed to the ground, the adrenaline suddenly vanishing.  
  
  


*

And then it all went so fast after the battles.  
_  
Fighting so hard...  
_  
With incredible dexterity and speed, Bangar bandied the Eir’s bow and fired. Ira wondered whether he had aimed at her head or her heart. She had no idea because the only thing she knew was that her large wound, inflicted by Balthazar, was burning. It burned horribly. It had a violent shock when she fell with all her weight and that of her armor onto the hard, frozen ground.

They called out to her in panic. She too was desperate. How could she be fooled twice in the same way ? First with Balthazar and now with Bangar ; the warrior that she was had a real problem with enchanted and fiery weapons.  
When the adrenaline came down again and for good, when the red lines stopped running through her veins and warmed her body, Ira felt the bite of the cold around her and the morbid humidity.

And it was only after Crecia's pleas that Rytlock finally approached Ira and put his paws on her.  
It had been a long time since Rytlock had touched her. Since he had seen Crecia again, he gave her a more gentle touch. It was as if they had returned to the time when they were just strangers to each other. She missed the gentleness. Now there was only the hoarseness of his grave and low words.

Their voices hadn't faded, but a high-pitched whistle pierced her eardrums. Her already blurred vision was drastically diminished. She blinked in an attempt to see and hold on to detail, to something. She blinked once, twice... three... four...

Someone was calling out to her. She turned around and found nothing but nil.

_  
Rest...  
_  
She blinked one last time before losing consciousness, stopping fighting, struggling in the quicksand that was her life.

* * *

  
  
  
Rytlock and Crecia evacuated the Commander with difficulty ; her many muscles and stature weighed heavily while her whole body was limp and her head hung in the air.  
  
As soon as they left the cave, Jhavi and the Vigil rushed towards them. The necromancer screamed at the doctors to hurry up while Ira's inert body was as if swallowed up by gravity.  
Crecia prepared to go to Braham's rescue and avoid the worst with Ryland and Bangar while Jhavi looked after her comrade norn. Rytlock, however, didn't let go of his warrior's arms. He didn't move. His gaze wavered again and again towards the mortally wounded norn. Stoneglow understood that Rytlock had made his choice.  
He had lost Ryland, Almorra, and he didn't intend to lose his friend. The appellation rang bitterly.  
  
  
  


* * *

  
  
  
The cold disappeared. She woke up in a place full of sweetness. A sweetness that would not betray her, that would not hurt her. Ahead of her, Aurene stood great, beautiful.  
In the pure and white glitter, a peace wrapped around this permanent anger.  
And after chatting with her dragon, Ira looked into the scrying pool and event brackets came into her memory.  
  
  
The form of the Raven Spirit appeared and Braham turned to the Commander, « Raven...don't you follow him, too ? Maybe he's trying to show you something. Let's look around. »  
  
She shrugged her shoulders and nodded. It was true that she was following him, but he had stopped following her in order to guide her.  
  
« Brother Raven may be loathe to share his secrets with us, but he cannot help but praise your deeds. »  
  
He bowed his muzzle with respect, but his face pierced it with reproaches, « You have brought much honor to Raven. To all of us. »  
  
But the Raven no longer spoke to her and Wolf’s words no longer had the same power as before.  
  
« You honor me with your words, Wolf Spirit. » she replied politely, but in spite of all her control, weariness and dismay invaded her voice.  
  
  
Aurene's voice took Ira out of her thoughts and her head out of the water, « So you're drawn to the Scrying Pool as well? Its waters connect many threads in the Mists. Threads throughout time. »  
  
Her whole appearance seemed nostalgic and tinged with a strange sadness, « I believe that power drew me to this place. But I'll need more time to understand it. »  
  
  
She approached her comrades, who exclaimed and hastened to hear from her.  
  
« What happened in there ? » she asked neutrally.  
  
« I might've, uh...become the wolf. » he declared his sentence timidly, but pride gnawed at his features.  
  
« Might've ? » she strangled herself.  
  
« For a little bit, yeah. »  
  
« Wolf Spirit was on to something after all. Just needed a bit of a push. A friend in mortal danger can do that. »  
  
Ira had a twisted smile of pain and disgust, « I knew you had it in you, Braham. You saved our lives. Again. Thank you. » resentment was burning out her vocal cords.  
  
« I, uh... Thanks. »  
  
Then she asked the accursed and many times asked question lately, « So. Bangar ? »  
  
« Wasted no time stealing credit for our kill. »  
  
« Any charr who thought he couldn't bring an Elder Dragon to heel is probably having second thoughts now. » Crecia explained.  
  
« And Ryland ? » The question burned her lips and dried her throat.  
  
« Gone. With him. » The fire inside Ira was hoping they were dead. The fool AND the child.  
  
The group moved on to Aurene and Jhavi questioned, « So what's our next move ? »  
  
« We wait for Bangar's next move. He'll reach out to the legions, using Drakkar's death as proof of his power. »  
  
« If he starts splitting up the charr, we're talking civil war. And our son— »  
  
« Our cub's made his choice. Now we can only respond to it. We'll need to be ready. For anything. »  
  
« Yeah... For anything. »  
  
  


*

She was already heading for the exit, furious at everything. At nothing. At her.  
She knew Rytlock wasn't ready, that he'd keep picking Ryland, keep listening to Crecia. After the Raven, he turned his back on her, too. Ever since she'd broken the mask, ever since she'd shown the sentient being behind the warrior, nothing was right.

She was the Commander of the Pact -a leader, a dragonslayer, a deicide : no one would step on her. She was the boss of everything. Before she was a norn now. It was killing her on the inside, but it was time to stop swinging from one side to the other.  
The Raven had abandoned her because he no longer considered her a worthy norn. So why did she continue to be a norn ?

Braham was growing up, but he would never get her size, her greatness. He'll never measure up.  
Rytlock preferred to turn away from her. So be it. She wasn't chasing him anymore.  
Crecia wanted to get in the way. All right. She'll soon realize she's no match for her.

Ira had to get back to work.  
Surrender and let the Commander take over.  
She walked away from the sanctuary and the peace disappeared like a forest still in the grip and clutches of flames of devastating wildfire and above all... unstoppable fire.

_  
Don't you want to give up ?  
_

She grabbed her long braid, decorated with quills and other norn ornaments, and with a quick gesture with her dagger, the hair came off.  
The feathers fell silently as the heavy footsteps of the commander sounded less and less loud as she moved away. Braham and Rytlock gazed, dazed, at the scene, doing nothing to stop Ira.  
There was no doubt that the Norn and the Charr were trying to obtain and protect something they didn't deserve.  
The gold of glory shines but brings no light. A child's love isn’t obtained by force.  
Yet they didn’t see that this reward, they thought they were worthy of, was going to be in exchange for something more precious.

Ira was already flying away from them. She was a firebird. And as she spread her wings to fly towards that freedom, she was consuming herself ; first her skin, then her whole being. Her head was on fire, ignited by this guilty responsibility. Meanwhile, the cold was attacking her fingers, her wings and was already rising towards her heart until it froze. However, she played with this burning scald so dangerous because neither the Wolf nor the Charr could bring her the warmth she sought so much in the cold whispers. A comforting warmth that would give her this freedom. A warmth that would not burn her as fate was tearing her apart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> > I don't own anything ; All the characters belong to ArenaNet except Ira (Original female norn Character).


End file.
